Pittsburgh’s Jameson Taillon will be back on the hill tonight in what’s likely to be a more emotional moment than your ordinary return from the DL. Early money is showing strong support for Pittsburgh’s prized righty has soared from a -119 opener to -132. Taillon has said that he is 100% mentally and physically heading into this start and he claims to be as sharp as he’s been all year. He stretched out to 97 pitches over six innings in his final rehab start last Wednesday so it appears as if all systems are go. Colorado rookie Kyle Freeland has successfully pitched to contact thus far. Freeland’s 49 strikeouts in 76 innings are underwhelming but his 127 ground ball outs and 57.5% ground ball rate have propelled him. There are some peripherals that suggest season long success isn’t likely sustainable but he’s been pretty economical to this point averaging six innings and 15.5 pitches per inning. Nine of his past 10 starts have been quality by definition.

MLB Betting Update: Chase Field humidor still pending

Still no official word on when the Arizona Diamondbacks plan to use its proposed humidor. The latest update indicate it could happen before the All-Star Break. Through 35 games, totals are 21-12-2 O/U at Chase Field. The average total is 9.5. The average score is 10.46.

"No ball is allowed to be brought out unless it's been there for two weeks," GM Mike Hazen said. "And if they come out and don't get used they have to go back in there. Major League Baseball oversees that."

MLB Handicapper Free Betting Pick: Boston Red Sox at New York Yankees

David Price spent the first two months of the season on the DL following an elbow strain in spring training. His first start back in the big leagues was a little bit rusty, lasting only five innings against the White Sox. Last time out, Price threw a seven inning gem against the Orioles, allowing just three hits in the process.

All the postgame quotes following that contest scream "bet on" for David Price moving forward. Price: "I felt good. Just trying to make better pitches. I don't want to be out there throwing 100 pitches or 90 pitches through five innings. I was back to being efficient, getting a lot of early outs and not giving up a whole lot of runs." Red Sox manager John Farrell: “He was outstanding. He was in complete control, and he got into a great rhythm.” Orioles manager Buck Showalter, after his team got dominated: “He’s one of those guys who’s adding pitches as he goes on in his career. He’s one of the best.”

Michael Pineda has a value problem. His advanced metric stats are elite, Read more

MLB Handicapper Free Betting Pick: Colorado Rockies at Chicago Cubs

This is not the greatest pitching matchup from a Colorado perspective but the plus price is too good to pass up. The red hot and surging Rockies are an outstanding 38-23 including 21-10 on the road. Tyler Chatwood has had some rough patches this season but he’s also notched three consecutive strong starts on the road allowing just three runs over 20 IP. All told, he owns a 2.68 ERA on the highway. Chatwood is 2-0 with a 0.69 ERA against the Cubs in his career and he pitched a 7-inning shutout against this lineup last season right here at Wrigley Field. I think Chatwood and the strong Colorado bullpen behind him have a chance to neutralize the Cubs' lineup in tonight’s series opener. On the flip side, veteran lefty Jon Lester takes the mound for Chicago and his current form over his last three starts is mediocre at best with a 4.92 ERA. He's surrendered 9 runs in his last 9.1 innings of work and has allowed at least one home run in each of his last two trips to the mound. Colorado has won four straight games entering tonight’s contest Read more

When FanGraphs published Philadelphia's "Top 33" prospects prior to the season, Ben Lively was listed under "other prospects of note." Lively has had some success at the Minor League level but the consensus is that he'll have trouble against MLB hitters. In his debut, he allowed only 1 run over 7 innings against San Francisco. He didn't fan a single batter however and had only five swinging strikes. All signs point towards Lively's ceiling being that of a lower-tier NL starter. RA Dickey's long career lookings to be coming to an end. Despite the switch back to the National League, Dickey's K rate is down over 2 per 9 innings (4.41) while his walk rate is a career-worst 4.68. And those numbers get even worse when you look at recent outings (L4 starts, 22.2 IP, 31 hits, 16 BBs, 10 Ks, 6.75 ERA). The Braves won six of his 11 starts but needed to score 4, 7, 9, 7, 6, and 6 runs to do so. And both bullpens grade out as below average, especially Philadelphia's that chose to use a position player in last night's 14-1 loss. The MLB betting markets have undergone a Read more

MLB Handicapping: American League continues to be great bet in interleague play

The American League is once again whopping the National League's ass in interleague play. This season, the AL is 63-43 and up +15.6 units. Note too, nearly 57% of those games went over the total. Below is the AL's record vs. the NL (including the World Series) dating back to 2008. Only twice in the last 10 years has the AL failed to turn a seasonal profit against the NL.